Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History 

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

62 | AUGUST 4 • 2022 

On the Home Front
F

rom its first issue in 1942, the 
JN has covered Jewish men and 
women serving in the military, 
from the massive enlistment in the 
U.S. armed forces during WWII to the 
modern era to “Lone Soldiers” in the 
Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The JN has 
continued to publish stories about Jewish 
service members for the past 80 years. 
To this point, see the 
cover story about Rachel 
Baker in this week’s issue. 
Nineteen-year-old Pfc. 
Baker is a member of 
the Michigan National 
Guard and the Jewish 
War Veterans of the U.S.A 
(JWV).
The William Davidson Digital Archive 
of Jewish Detroit History is a treasure 
trove of information about Jewish 
Detroiters in the military. A search using 
the word “military” brings up 25,000 
entries; the word “War” is cited more 
than 73,000 times. Of course, “war” is a 
generic term that is used in such phrases 
as “war on poverty” or “war against 
crime,
” so not all of the above pages 
address Jewish women and men in the 
service.
However, the search term “Jewish War 
Veterans” raises more than 7,000 pages. 
Like this week’s report on Pfc. Baker, 
these stories are about Jewish veterans as 
well the JWV itself.
Nearly every man or woman serving 
in the U.S. Armed Forces or the IDF 
has left a family behind. There are many 
stories in the Archive about a mom and 
dad or a wife or husband or children 
on the home front, doing their best to 
provide support for their loved ones in 
the armed forces.
I found many informative stories 
about the home front in the Davidson 
Archive. They begin with the Jewish 
Chronicle, which launched in 1916 
during WWI. An advertisement for the 

Navy in the July 12, 1918, 
issue attempted to assuage 
the fears of mothers by 
listing all the benefits for 
their sons. In his first “Youth’s 
Listening Post” column in 
1942, Danny Raskin wrote 
that more than half of the girls 
in the Young People’s Club at 
Temple Israel had completed 
their training as USO hostesses 
(March 27, 1942, JN). During 
WWII, the USO provided vital 
home front social activities for 
those serving in the U.S. military. 
The May 21, 2009, issue of the JN 
features a Suzanne Chessler review 
of Standing By. Written by Alison 
Buckholtz, this book is her very 
personal story of life on the home 
front as the wife of a Jewish Navy pilot.
“Readying for War” in the March 
21, 2003, JN, is an excellent feature 
article that speaks to our recent history. 
Published just as the U.S. is about 
to launch a major military operation 
in Iraq, it summed up the thoughts 
of many Michigan Jewish families 
regarding their loved ones who were on 
duty: “Local families with children brace 
for uncertainty but find some support.
”
General of the Union in the American 
Civil War, William Tecumseh Sherman, 
succinctly stated: “War is hell.
” Anyone 
who has experienced combat knows this 
is true. Unfortunately, we must prepare 
to defend America and support those 
who are currently fighting the good fight 
in Israel, the Ukraine and elsewhere. 
While we honor those who fight and 
sacrifice on our behalf, it is also good 
to remember those on the home front 
who do their part to support those in the 
armed forces. 

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation 
archives, available for free at 
www.djnfoundation.org.

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

